ITV

Category: People

  • Aakash Aath appoints zonal heads for east and west India

    Aakash Aath appoints zonal heads for east and west India

    KOLKATA: Channel Eight, which re-launched its Bengali general entertainment channel (GEC) Akash Bangla as Aakash Aath last year, has now made two key appointments. While Vamshi Pendyala has been roped in as zonal head – west, Debasish Chattopadhyay is the new zonal head – east.

     

    Pendyala is a media and advertising professional with a rich experience of maximising advertising revenues across genres. Prior to joining Aakash Aath, he worked in Hummra M (CNEB Network) as head, advertising sales – west and south and Narne Networks as national head – advertising.

     

    On the other hand, Chattopadhyay has over 25 years of experience in sales and marketing, concept selling and advertising sales. Prior to joining the channel, he worked at ETV Network as senior manager and national sales head of ETV Bangla and was involved in strategising, sales and operations.

     

    “Aakash Aath is focusing on maximising the market share in the GEC space. Keeping this in mind we have appointed Vamshi Pendyala and Debasish Chattopadhyay. With their vast experiences, they would help us in achieving our growth target. They would be responsible for stratetigising, developing new areas of business and increasing the advertising revenues for the channel,” said Aakash Aath director Eshita Surana.

     

    Positioned as a GEC, Aakash Aath presents a wide variety of programme including news bulletins (Aakash Barta), catering to audiences across age group.

     

    The programmes on air are Janani (fiction), Good Morning Akash (live musical programme with guest artistes), FM On TV (music programme), Radhuni (cookery contest based show), Shahityer Shera Somoy (screen adaptations of literary classics), Police Filez (crime show based on real life incidents), Hing Ting Chhot (children’s programme), Gaan Doriya (music show) and Ghhente Gha (comedy show).

    The channel also airs blockbuster movies and telefilms. “The channel aims to launch an array of interesting shows in the coming days,” Surana concluded.

  • Gunjan Varshney joins Doodarshan as Regional sales head

    Gunjan Varshney joins Doodarshan as Regional sales head

    MUMBAI: Gunjan Varshney has joined pubcaster, Doordarshan, to boost its sales revenue. She has joined as the  regional sales head for north India.

     

    As head, she will be responsible for revenue generation for the network from north India, based in New Delhi.

     

    Speaking on her new role, Varshney said, “I am delighted and honoured to be given this opportunity to be a part of India’s own biggest media network, and look forward for an exciting carrier ahead.”

     

    Prior to this, she was with Focus News Network as deputy vice president. She has over 12 years of experience in TV channels and ad agencies including Grey Advertising, ETV, Star, Hungama and Zee News.

  • IBF appoints Uday Shankar as the new president

    IBF appoints Uday Shankar as the new president

    MUMBAI: At the just concluded Indian Broadcasting Foundation (IBF) 15th annual general meeting (AGM), Star India CEO Uday Shankar has been appointed as the new president of the organisation.

     

    The position was earlier held by MSM non executive chairman Man Jit Singh.

     

    This is a comeback for Shankar who held on to the position from 2010 to 2012.

     

    Confirming the news to indiantelevision.com, Shankar said that he was happy to take charge. “I am privileged to be trusted by the members of IBF to lead the industry body at a critical juncture when the industry needs to leap to the next level by working collaboratively with the Government and other stake holders,”said Shankar and added, “Punit Goenka would have been my personal preference for the president’s role since I have already done a stint as IBF president.  However, in view of Punit’s existing commitment to BARC, he proposed that I hold the reigns at IBF”.

     

    The IBF Board also elected Punit Goenka as vice president – Measurement, N P Singh as vice president – Distribution, Rajat Sharma as vice president – Strategic Affairs and Rahul Johri as treasurer.

  • CNN International’s Ellana Lee promoted to international role

    CNN International’s Ellana Lee promoted to international role

    MUMBAI: CNN International Asia Pacific vice president and managing editor Ellana Lee has been promoted to senior vice president of CNN International, adding international oversight of the network’s expansive roster of feature programs while continuing to manage CNN’s editorial operation across Asia Pacific. Working in close partnership with colleagues at Turner International, Lee will also be charged with developing CNN International’s business operations worldwide from the Asia headquarters in Hong Kong.                            

     

    Making the announcement, CNN International executive vice president and managing editor Tony Maddox said, “In this new role, Ellana becomes our most senior executive outside of the US. Ellana is the perfect fit for this new role. She already has an important job on her hands looking after the network’s editorial output in Asia Pacific but we’re thrilled she will now undertake an international role overseeing the network’s feature programming and spearheading business operations internationally.” 

     

    Lee has had a longstanding and accomplished career at CNN, having initially worked in New York as a producer. She was named a ‘Young Global Leader’ by the World Economic Forum, is an Asia 21 fellow as awarded by the Asia Society and is a graduate of Harvard’s ‘Global Leadership and Public Policy for the 21st Century’ Executive Program.  

     

    CNN International today also announced further key staff appointments in Asia Pacific, strengthening the network’s newsgathering and editorial capabilities in the region. 

     

    Other new roles to be based in the CNN International Hong Kong bureau include: supervising producer Mitra Mobasherat; assignment editor Chieu Luu; news field producer Pamela Boykoff; business field producer Felicia Wong; planning editor Bex Wright; business planning editor Jonathan Stayton; features producer Michala Sabnani; and associate features producer Alisha Haridasani. In addition, senior international correspondent Ivan Watson moved to Hong Kong last week and will now be permanently based in Asia. 

     

    “This new structure helps us to continue delivering the outstanding editorial output across all platforms that has seen us serve audiences worldwide with award-winning newsgathering and programming. I couldn’t be happier with the team we now have in place,” added Maddox. 

     

    These appointments come after a string of recent awards and accolades for the network including the Royal Television Society’s ‘News Channel of the Year’ for the second straight year and the ‘Cable and Satellite Channel of the Year’ at 2013 Asian Television Awards. In addition, the latest IPSOS survey results show CNN is the leading international news brand in the Asia Pacific region across television, online and mobile.

  • Gautam Bhanot joins NewsX as national revenue head

    Gautam Bhanot joins NewsX as national revenue head

    MUMBAI: ITV Network, which runs news channels NewsX and India News, has roped in Gautam Bhanot as the national revenue head for its English channel. He will be responsible for the overall sales and revenue generation of NewsX.

    He will focus on growing the top line while also looking at creating new revenue streams and opportunities. Bhanot has 16 years of experience with his last sting being at Network18 where he was national sales head for CNN-IBN for nine years.

    Prior to this, he was with CNN-IBN, CNBC-TV18 and CNBC Awaaz as VP sales for north region. He’s also worked with The Times of India, Economic Times and Tej Bandhu Group.

    ITV Network MD Kartikeya Sharma said, “Gautam brings with him a wealth of knowledge and expertise that will be invaluable in unlocking the potential value of brand NewsX. I am confident that Gautam with his in depth understanding of media sales combined with his dynamism and leadership as a sales professional will be a great asset to the organisation.”

    ITV Network group CEO RK Arora said, “We are delighted to have Gautam on board at this exciting time of growth and expansion at ITV Network. We are certain that his experience and understanding of the business will benefit NewsX as we strive to continue to be the market leader in English news genre, in line with ITV Network’s objective of becoming India’s profitable and largest TV news network.”

    Bhanot said, “I believe the industry is going through a transformational phase wherein programming formats, news consumption patterns, technology platforms all are evolving and hence the opportunity to learn and contribute is immense. My agenda will be to enhance the offerings of NewsX and partner with new and existing clients, to deliver delight and grow the revenue stream.”

  • Colosceum gets Siddharth Anand Kumar on board

    Colosceum gets Siddharth Anand Kumar on board

    MUMBAI: It was in July that Lalit Sharma, who was part of the founding team with Ajit Andhare and Rajiv Lakshman, took charge as the CEO of Colosceum.

     

    And since then he has been working hard to take the production house, which saw a few senior exits in the past couple of years, to greater heights because he believes it’s the work that matters as people come and go. In the last couple of months three new hires have been made to strengthen the production house’s top line management.

     

    “We have already introduced Hitesh Bhatia and Vikrant Bharadwaj in the non-scripted space, and now we have got on board Siddharth Anand Kumar as scripted creative head,” says Sharma while adding that the main aim is to strengthen the team.

     

    “People come and people go, but what really matters is the work. One should let the work talk,” adds Sharma.

     

    The deal was negotiated by content and talent management company, Tulsea Pictures, which represents both Kumar and Colosceum.

     

    Kumar studied filmmaking in Hampshire College in USA and has worked as a freelance cinematographer and editor for several film and TV projects. He has worked as an assistant to Mira Nair during the making of Kamasutra (1995), as DOP and editor for Bobby Bedi during the production of the TV series Rajdhani (2000), and as the executive producer for Shekhar Kapur’s company Digital Talkies during which he oversaw the production of two feature films and the country’s first International Digital Film Festival (2001).

     

    He has directed two films: Let’s Enjoy (2004), a film about a Delhi farmhouse party and Semshook (2010), a coming of age story set in the Tibetan exile community while his TV projects include Seven and Khotey Sikkey by Yash Raj Films on Sony and Mahabharat by Swastik Pictures on Star Plus.

     

    Kumar states, “With various popular shows as part of their existing show reel, Colosceum has already started to establish its superiority in the Hindi GEC space. I am confident that my partnership with Colosceum will result in some exceptional fiction television content for India to watch. I am enthusiastically looking forward to working with Colosceum and to take its fiction shows to the next-level as ‘must-watch’ Indian television.”

     

    Currently, producing Splitsvilla, the production house prouds itself of multi-seasonal properties for both youth channels and GECs. “With more and more GECs concentrating on younger audiences, the line separating the content between the two is thinning and GECs too want to attract younger eyeballs,” highlights Sharma. He credits his young-blooded team as well as experienced research team for grasping the new trends amongst youngsters and used those insights to create popular shows.

     

    On International production houses making a mark in the Indian television industry, Sharma feels that the competition is healthy. “It is important as through these companies we get an exposure of how they work.”

     

    The year (2013) Andhare left, the company did have to face a tough time, but things have improved now and business is only growing. The production house is already in talks with various broadcasters for new shows which will go air in the near future.

     

    Apart from that, it is also concentrating in building the film arm and the next six months could see some good news.

  • IBN7 ropes in Sumit Awasthi as deputy managing editor

    IBN7 ropes in Sumit Awasthi as deputy managing editor

    MUMBAI: IBN7 has appointed Sumit Awasthi as deputy managing editor. Prior to this, he was resident editor at Zee News.

     

    He will make a comeback on the channel with a special show on ‘100 Days of Modi Government.’ Awasthi has not only covered political news but also cricket and international affairs. Awasthi has worked with IBN7 earlier as well as with Aaj Tak.

     

    Meanwhile, Akash Soni also joins the channel as anchor. He has over 18 years of experience across TV, radio, print and online media including BBC World Service, London. His expertise is across various fields including Indian politics and international affairs.

     

    The channel will enhance its political coverage with the two of them.

  • BBC Worldwide appoints John Williams and Katy Xu for ad sales in Asia

    BBC Worldwide appoints John Williams and Katy Xu for ad sales in Asia

    MUMBAI: BBC Advertising is boosting its ad sales team in Asia to tap into the growing opportunities in the region. Recent studies have predicted strong growth in advertising revenues in Asia Pacific.

     

    Two new roles have been created within the Asia leadership team to get closer to customers and identify new cross-platform opportunities. John Williams has been appointed ASEAN and India vice president, based in Singapore while Katy Xu will be Greater China and North Asia vice president, located in Hong Kong. They both have commenced their new roles from 1 September 2014 and report to BBC Worldwide advertising sales EVP Sunita Rajan.

     

    Williams was earlier located in New York where he was BBC Worldwide North America international advertising VP. Xu takes up an expanded role while currently being Hong Kong and Greater China regional director.

     

    Speaking on their appointment, Rajan said, “With their knowledge and valuable experience in operating across both mature and emerging markets, John and Katy will lead our region to further growth. I am looking forward to working with them to drive the strategic direction and new business across Asia Pacific.”

     

    Williams said, “I am excited about this opportunity to work in one of the most exciting regions in the world with a new team eager for continued success, representing a suite of BBC products that are both in demand by audiences and advertisers alike.”

     

    Katy Xu commented, “BBC is already a successful brand in countries across Asia and I am looking forward to building partnerships in new and existing markets to take our ad sales business to the next level.”

     

    BBC Advertising plans to focus on its key priority markets such as India, China, Korea, Japan and Southeast Asia.

  • Nikhil Wagle joins Mi Marathi as consultant

    Nikhil Wagle joins Mi Marathi as consultant

    MUMBAI: After a brief hiatus of a month, former IBN Lokmat editor in chief Nikhil Wagle has now assumed the role of a consultant with Mi Marathi. He will host a new show called Point Blank at 9pm from Monday to Friday.

     

    Wagle’s expertise in political news will be leveraged by the channel for the upcoming state elections in Maharashtra. He will also be anchoring an interview based show very soon. In his new capacity, Wagle is free to appear on other Hindi and English news channels but not on any competing Marathi channel.

     

    Recently, the Marathi news channel underwent a few changes. It got on board Ravindra Ambekar as chief editor, veteran journalist Kumar Ketkar as media consultant and Bharat Kumar Raut as consulting editor.

     

    Wagle has worked with Doordarshan as well as newspaper Aapla Mahanagar and has been with IBN Lokmat since its launch in 2008.

  • BBC World Service chief Peter Horrocks to step down

    BBC World Service chief Peter Horrocks to step down

    MUMBAI: BBC World Service Group director Peter Horrocks is leaving the corporation in the New Year after 33 years with the UK broadcaster.

     

    Horrocks has been director of the World Service since 2009, taking responsibility for BBC World News TV and multimedia services in 28 languages. Under his leadership weekly audiences for the BBC’s global news services – BBC World Service, BBC World News and BBC.com – have reached a record of 265 million.

     

    He  has led the World Service through some of its most challenging times, responding to funding cuts by modernising the World Service for the digital age. He also oversaw moves to make the World Service the BBC’s first licence fee funded operation to take advertising and sponsorship, a change that proved contentious.

     

    Announcing his resignation from BBC, Horrocks said, “It has been a privilege to be director of the BBC World Service, which is loved and trusted by hundreds of millions of people around the world. I am hugely proud of the dedication, the creativity and the reinvention shown by my team. The World Service now has its largest ever audience, an expanding number of languages, is modernised and transformed for a digital age.”

     

    “Having overseen this recovery and taken the World Service into the new era of licence fee funding, it is time for me to move on to my next challenge. I will miss BBC but am confident that the BBC’s global news services are in strong shape for the future,” he added.

     

    BBC World News has undergone a creative renewal that is being appreciated by audiences around the world and bbc.com/news now regularly achieves one billion page views a month. BBC News is the most retweeted news source in the world.

     

    Talking about Horrocks, BBC director general Tony Hall said, “Peter’s remarkable career at the BBC has spanned more than three decades. Starting as a news trainee, he established himself as the youthful editor of public eye before going on to lead teams that produced some of the BBC’s most important news programmes.”

     

    “Those who have worked with him know of his energy, drive, his passion for journalism and his innovation but they have also come to appreciate his editorial integrity and his deeply rooted sense of BBC values. He leaves us as one of our most respected leaders. He is a force of nature and we will miss him,” he added.

     

    Agreeing with the director general, director of BBC News and Current Affairs James Harding said,” “Peter Horrocks has been a defining figure in the modern history of the BBC World Service and global news. His sharp intellect, open-mindedness and good judgment have shaped BBC News and Current Affairs for three decades. He has recruited and inspired hundreds of people here in the UK and around the world. And, like few others, he has set his stamp on both the programmes and the personality of the BBC.”